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We want to make sure that you fully understand what we offer, the way that a product performs and what your responsibilities are under a contract hire or finance agreement. We've put together some frequently asked questions but if you have any questions, we're here to help so please call us.
Q: What are the minimum and maximum contract lengths?
Our contract terms are normally for a minimum of 24 months or a maximum of 60 months, although we may occasionally be able to offer shorter-term deals.
Q: What is the minimum and maximum mileage allowance?
The minimum mileage allowance can be as low as 5,000 miles per annum going up to a maximum of 50,000, but it is dependent on the funder.
Q: Are the vehicles brand new?
The majority of the vehicles that we supply are brand new and will be registered just before delivery to you. However, sometimes we and/or our funders are offered a special price to take a batch of vehicles that need to be registered by a certain time. In these instances, a vehicle may be registered prior to receiving your application. We call this 'pre-registered'. The vehicle won't have been used by anyone and will come to you with delivery mileage only but you need to be aware that the manufacturer's warranty may expire before the end of the agreement and you will need to have the vehicle MOT'd when it is 3 years old. We're able to offer a service, maintenance and tyres (subject to fair wear and tear) package which will cover these costs and is spread over the term of your agreement helping you to budget, please ask us to provide you with the add-on amount and for details of what this includes and excludes.
Q: Do you supply any used vehicles?
Due to the exceptional level of discount we receive on new vehicles, it is not normally cost-effective to supply used vehicles, although occasionally if we are offered an exceptional batch of quality cars we may put together a bespoke offer.
Q: Will my vehicle have a warranty and what does that cover?
All vehicles are supplied from new with a Manufacturer's warranty covering manufacturing faults or defects to mechanical parts and paintwork. The warranty will also usually roadside assistance and recovery in the event of a breakdown. The period of the warranty and breakdown cover varies from manufacturer to manufacturer so you should check this before entering into an agreement.
Q: What is the difference between a customer-maintained quote and a quote including maintenance?
Under the terms of the finance agreement, you will be required to service and maintain the vehicle in accordance with the manufacturer's recommendations and ensure that it is always roadworthy. If you have chosen a customer-maintained contract, then you do this at your own expense. With a maintained contract, the cost of this is included. Having an agreement with maintenance enables not only easy budgeting but is usually less expensive than pay as you go due to the buying power of the finance company who are able to negotiate discounted parts and labour. Please speak to us for more information.
Q: What is a Diesel Particulate Filter and what is Ad-Blue?
For information on Diesel Particulate Filters and Ad-Blue, please see our Diesel Vehicle Factsheet.
Q: Will you take my current vehicle in part exchange?
We do not take vehicles in part exchange although we may be able to put you in touch with a local dealer who could give you a price for your current vehicle.
Q: What are the eligibility requirements?
Private individuals must be over 18 years of age, have been a resident in the UK for a minimum of 3 years and must be on the electoral roll at their current address. Companies applying for Business Contract Hire or other types of finance must have at least 1 UK based director or proprietor. There may be other criteria according to the specific offer you choose as we use a number of different funders to achieve the best price.
Q: What happens when I make an application for finance?
We will submit the application details to one of our funders. They will perform a credit search on you and/or your organisation and on any guarantors, you offer to support the application. This is to verify your identity and to assess your suitability for and affordability of finance. The search will leave a footprint on your credit file. If you are a director of a limited company or a trustee and/or an authorised signatory finance companies are required to verify your identity too and they will perform an identity check only through the credit reference agency.
Finance is subject to status and a credit search will be undertaken to assess your suitability and your affordability of servicing a credit agreement. You should not enter into a financial commitment if you consider that you may not be able to adhere to the terms of an agreement either now or in the future. Failure to maintain payments on time will be recorded on your credit file which could affect your ability to borrow in the future and may result in the vehicle being repossessed.
Q: What will I need to supply with my application?
To comply with 'Know Your Customer' and to help to prevent fraud we will need additional information to be supplied with your application. For private individuals, sole traders and partners in a small partnership we will require proof of your identity by way of a driving licence and proof of your address by way of a utility bill or bank statement. The finance company may also require copies of bank statements and wage slips to assess your affordability of the vehicle.
For businesses, we may require you to supply your latest accounts and we will require proof of identity for the finance agreement signatory and sometimes also proof of home address. For personal guarantors, we will need proof of identity and proof of address.
Q: How long will it take to get a decision?
Usually, the finance company will inform us of their decision within 4 hours. However, this may be affected by the volume of applications and if they require additional information from you.
Q: How secure is your online application process?
All of the data will be encrypted from our server to the client machine using an SSL certificate to ensure the data is not put at risk. All data is then encrypted into our database, which is accessed by ourselves through the password-protected section of the site.
Q: Do you require a deposit or payment in advance?
Sometimes a dealer will ask for a deposit to order the vehicle. This is very rare and is usually a) if the vehicle is of an unusual specification or colour or b) to secure a build slot of a vehicle that is yet to be released. We will notify you of this prior to you placing an order. The deposit will be payable directly to the dealer. This is not taken off of the purchase price to the finance company and the dealer is responsible for refunding this to you when the finance company has paid them for the vehicle after delivery. The initial payment or initial rental required by the finance company and detailed in your agreement is payable directly to the finance company. This is usually taken by direct debit immediately after delivery of the vehicle. We will charge you an administration fee when we receive your order and this is payable within 7 days of invoice.
Q: How are the monthly payments made?
Monthly payments are taken by direct debit and must be from a bank account that matches the name of the individual or organisation on the agreement.
Q: When and how will I receive the finance agreement?
Following acceptance of your application by the finance company they will issue the agreement for you to sign. Most of the finance companies will send this to you by email for e-signature, whilst others will send it to you by post. The signed agreement together with any additional information that the finance company may have requested as a condition of the finance acceptance will need to be in place with them before delivery of the vehicle. Please note that personal contracts have a cooling off period of 14 days which starts when the agreement is signed and returned to the finance company and this must expire prior to delivery of the vehicle.
Q: How quickly will I receive my car after ordering?
This will depend on whether you have chosen a vehicle that is in stock or whether the vehicle is being built to your exact specification. If you have chosen a stock vehicle the delivery will be arranged with you as soon as we have received the signed documentation, payment of the administration fee and after the expiry of the cooling-off period (for personal customers). If the vehicle is a factory order we will be able to give you only an estimated delivery date based on the lead time given to us by the supplier and/or manufacturer. We will not be able to confirm a delivery date until a vehicle is physically in stock with the supplier. Please note that factory lead times can change, sometimes significantly but we will keep you updated.
Q: Can my local dealer supply the vehicle?
We prefer to use our network of preferred suppliers as we have agreed standards of service and an excellent pricing structure, however, we will negotiate with your local dealer if you would like us to and if they can meet the required terms then we can use them to supply cars or vans for commercial vehicle leasing.
Q: What happens if I decide to cancel after ordering?
Once you have signed an order for a specific vehicle and we have placed your order with our supplier we will charge a cancellation fee of £600 (£500 + VAT) if you change your mind. The supplier may also make a charge for any loss that they incur. You may have the right to cancel the finance on the vehicle that you order. However, your rights to cancel may not extend to the cancellation of your order for the vehicle.
Q: Will you deliver the vehicle?
We will deliver your vehicle anywhere on the UK mainland during our normal hours of business, Monday to Friday 9am to 5.30pm. Other delivery timeslots may be arranged if necessary but will be subject to availability. Most deliveries are driven, although if you specifically request it we may be able to arrange a transporter in some circumstances. Still, this may incur an additional cost.
Q: Who may accept delivery of the vehicle?
The person who is named on the agreement or the person signing the agreement on behalf of a company should accept delivery of the vehicle. Sometimes, it is possible to elect another person to take delivery and this will be subject to receiving your written authority and proof of identity of the receiving party. It is always best to accept delivery yourself as the person taking delivery will be required to inspect the vehicle to ensure that it is as ordered with all options present, that it is in good condition and to sign for the vehicle. We cannot be held responsible for any issues found with the vehicle after delivery.
Q: Who is responsible for the servicing and maintenance of the vehicle?
If you have chosen a customer-maintained contract then you will be required to service the vehicle in accordance with the manufacturer's guidelines at your own expense and all servicing and repairs should normally be carried out by a main franchised service centre. If you have opted for a full-maintenance contract then you will simply need to contact the funder who will arrange for the work to be carried out by an approved local supplier.
Please refer to your maintenance contract which details what is included and excluded in this package. Relief vehicles can also be included in the maintenance costs which is particularly beneficial for commercial vehicle leasing where a vehicle needs to be fit for the purposes of the business.
Q: What does a full maintenance contract include?
A contract that includes full maintenance will cover the cost of all routine servicing, repairs and maintenance which are not covered by the manufacturer's warranty and replacement tyres subject to fair wear and tear. Most maintenance packages will also include roadside assistance and recovery. Please refer to your maintenance contract which will detail what is included and what is excluded. Having an agreement with maintenance enables not only easy budgeting but is usually less expensive than pay as you go due to the buying power of the finance company who are able to negotiate discounted parts and labour.
Q: Who owns the vehicle?
Vehicles that are the subject of hire agreements such as Contract Hire or Personal Contract Hire are owned by the finance company. Vehicles that are the subject of purchase agreements such as Contract Purchase and Personal Contract Purchase are owned by the finance company until all of the payments under the terms of the agreement have been made.
Q: Who is responsible for insuring the vehicle?
The individual or organisation named on the agreement is responsible for arranging fully comprehensive insurance on the vehicle for the entire duration of the contract.
Q: What happens if I want to return the vehicle before the end of my agreement?
If you want to end your agreement early, it will depend on the type of agreement that you have and with which funder this is to work out the financial implications. If you think that you may need to end the agreement early, please contact us for advice. In addition to any early termination charge levied by a funder, you may also be liable for further costs. See 'Are there any other costs or charges?'.
Q: What happens at the end of the contract?
Depending on the type of contract you have chosen the vehicle will either be returned to the funder or you will make any final payments to retain ownership or dispose of the vehicle. Vehicles are expected to be returned in a reasonable condition as stated in the BVRLA Fair Wear & Tear guidelines, a hard copy of which can be forwarded to you upon request from your Account Manager or Customer Service team. Commercial vehicle leasing has its own set of fair wear and tear standards so please request the appropriate document.
Q: What happens about the collection of the vehicle at the end of the agreement?
We will usually, on your behalf, arrange the collection of the vehicle from an address specified by you anywhere in the UK mainland. Some funders will require you to contact them directly to arrange this. Collection is made on the arranged date between usually between 9am and 5pm. Most funders within their Terms and Conditions reserve the right to ask you to deliver the vehicle back to them although it is highly unusual for them to enforce this.
Q: Are there any other costs or charges?
It is a condition of the agreement that you must insure the vehicle comprehensively, maintain it in accordance with the Manufacturer's recommendations, always repair any damage and keep the vehicle in a good and roadworthy condition.
In addition to your monthly payment or monthly rental, you may incur additional costs if you fail to settle any fines or fees including parking fines, clamping charges or congestion charges as these may be passed to the finance company who will recharge you and levy an administration fee. You may incur charges if you decide to terminate the agreement before the contracted end date. Early termination charges vary between contract type and funder so please speak to us if you are considering this.
At the end of a contract (including early termination) you may be liable for additional costs if you exceed your contracted mileage (please refer to your agreement), any re-conditioning costs if the vehicle is not returned in a condition which they consider is suitable for its age and mileage, if the vehicle has not been correctly maintained or if any items which were with the vehicle at the time of delivery are missing, for example locking wheel nut, all keys. Please note that modifications cannot be made to the vehicle.
Q: What happens if I want to keep the car for longer?
This is dependent on the type of contract that you have and is usually only available to business users.
Q: Do you have a Code Of Conduct?
As members of the British Vehicle Rental & Leasing Association (BVRLA), we adhere to the Leasing Broker Members Code Of Conduct. The Code is the embodiment of what both we and the BVRLA stand for - quality, integrity and value for money. We are committed to these principles and will honour them by our actions which reinforces the message of 'use only a BVRLA Leasing Broker Member' - only then can you be assured of proper standards of quality, service and value.
Q: Do you have a complaints handling procedure?
Although we strive to provide a problem-free service, we appreciate that sometimes things do go wrong. If you have cause for complaint, we do have a Complaints Procedure. Details of this may be found on our website under 'Useful Links' or you can contact us for a copy.


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Editor's note: WRAL Local Tech Wire recently added more sources for news, including stories, photos and graphics produced by the news services of various universities. Such stories are labeled as UniversityTech and with the appropriate source. By adding stories and information from collegiate news services, LTW is enhancing significantly its coverage of scientific and research efforts at regional universities where many of tomorrow's discoveries are being made and the foundations of new companies are in the process of being created.
DURHAM, NC — The rapid convergence of social networks, mobile phones and global positioning technology has given Duke University engineers the ability to create something they call "virtual sticky notes," site-specific messages that people can leave for others to pick up on their mobile phones.
"Every mobile phone can act as a telescope lens providing real-time information about its environment to any of the 3 billion mobile phones worldwide," said Romit Roy Choudhury, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering in Duke's Pratt School of Engineering.
A team led by Roy Choudhury has developed a new software system that enables users to obtain location-specific, real-time information – either passively or directly – from other mobile phone users across the world. It will be as if every participating mobile phone works together, allowing each individual to access information throughout that virtual network.
Interested in trying that new Mexican restaurant? Tap into the virtual sticky notes floating in the ether within the restaurant and find what other network users thought of it.
Heading to the airport and need to know where the traffic jams are? Sensors in the phones detect movement and can relay back to the network where traffic is the heaviest.
The potential of this new application, which has been dubbed micro-blog, is practically limitless said Roy Choudhury.
"We can now think of mobile phones as a 'virtual lens' capable of focusing on the context surrounding it," Roy Choudhury said. "By combining the lenses from all the active phones in the world today, it may be feasible to build an internet-based 'virtual information telescope' that enables a high-resolution view of the world in real time."
The application combines the capabilities of distributed networks (like Wikipedia), social networks (Facebook), mobile phones, computer networks and geographic positioning capabilities, such as GPS or WiFi.
"Micro-blogs will provide unprecedented levels and amounts of information literally at your fingertips no matter where you are, through your mobile phone," Roy Choudhury said. "We have already deployed a prototype, and while some challenges remain to be addressed, the feedback we've received so far indicates that micro-blog represents a promising new model for mobile social communication."
Roy Choudhury presented the details of the micro-blog application at the MobiSYS 2008 6th International Conference on Mobile Systems, Applications and Services in Breckinridge, Colo.
Mobile phones are already more than just communications devices, Roy Choudhury points out. Increasingly they are coming equipped with cameras, GPS service, health monitors, and even accelerometers, devices which measure speed.
In simple terms, people who use the micro-blog application will enter information – photos, comments, videos – into their mobile phone, where it will be "tagged" by the user's location. Passive information, such as location or speed, can also be recorded. All this information is then sent to a central server, where it is available to all participants.
"So if you're planning a trip to the beach or a restaurant, you can query the micro-blog and get information or see images from people who have been or are currently there," Roy Choudhury said. Another application consists of individual, localized pockets of information.
"Say you are in a museum," Roy Choudhury said. "As you pass a particular painting, your phone could download comments from art experts providing relevant information about that painting."
The current prototype works with the Nokia N95 mobile phone, but Roy Choudhury said the application will eventually be written for any kind of programmable mobile phone. He also believes that these, and other as-yet-to-be imagined applications, will be commonplace within five years.
However, Roy Choudhury said there are three solvable issues that still need some work. The first is the trade-off between precise geographic location and battery power.
"GPS, while it can be accurate down to several meters, can also drain a mobile phone battery in seven hours," Roy Choudhury said. "On the other hand, WiFi and GSM technologies are widely available and don't use as much energy, but they aren't nearly as accurate. We believe that an approach blending these technologies will probably solve that problem." (GSM is an international cell phone standard that enables global roaming.)
Another issue is more societal than technological: What kinds of incentives would inspire users to enter information when queried by strangers, since that would involve their time and battery power.
Finally, location privacy needs to be addressed. Since mobile phones are transmitting data – including location – back to a central server, users must trust the administrator to keep this information private. Roy Choudhury believes that these issues can be addressed by assigning different modes – private, social or public – much like social networks already do.
The research was supported by the National Science Foundation and Verizon, Inc. Other members of the Duke team include Jack Li and Landon Cox. Shravan Gaonkar, University of Illinois, and Al Schmidt, Verizon, were also part of the team.

subset: commoncrawl


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While RIM's next-generation handsets such as the Bold, Storm and Curve 8900 are already flooding the marketplace — and a new wave including the Tour and Curve 8520 are on the horizon — it looks like RIM's bread and butter is still the trusty old Curve 83xx series. According to recent analysis by The NPD Group, the BlackBerry Curve was America's best selling smartphone in Q1 of 2009. It steals the title from the iPhone of course, as sales slow from its incredible pace last year. The NPD Group cites aggressive promotions such as Verizon's popular BOGO offers as the catalyst behind the surge. Here are the top five smartphones in America this past quarter:
- RIM BlackBerry Curve (all 83XX models)
- Apple iPhone 3G (all models)
- RIM BlackBerry Storm
- RIM BlackBerry Pearl (all models, except flip)
- T-Mobile G1
RIM, holding three of the top five slots, shipped an astounding 7.8 million BlackBerry handsets in its last reported quarter (Dec 08 – Feb 09) so this hardly comes as a surprise. With several new BlackBerry models on the horizon and at least one new iPhone model due out this Summer, things are definitely starting to heat up in the US smartphone space.


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A Look at Pluto's possible Magnetosphere
No one knows whether or not Pluto has a magnetosphere. Scientists were very surprised to find that Jupiter's icy moon Ganymede had a magnetosphere because it is hard to explain how an icy body can develop a magnetic field. Nevertheless, Pluto may well have a magnetic field, being warmed by tidal forces stemming from its dual orbit with its moon Charon.
On the other hand, Pluto may have a magnetic interaction with the interplanetary magnetic field similar to that of a comet, as illustrated in this diagram. Only exploration of this unique system will give us the answer.


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What does CBD stand for?
A lot of people are surprised to hear that CBD is not a natural ingredient in weed but rather a chemical compound derived from hemp. If you are interested in finding out more about this type of supplement, here are some of the benefits that you will be able to enjoy if you take it.
Benefits of CBD
The first benefit of CBD is the fact that cannabidiol has been proven to help treat a variety of ailments. In recent studies, it was shown to reduce the development of tumors. Cannabidiol also appears to be an effective anti-inflammatory agent. Other studies mentioned in articles at GoldBee.com have shown that it is capable of reducing the symptoms of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.
It should be noted that it is also possible to get CBD in liquid form. Since the main ingredient of most of these types of supplements is hemp oil, the only difference that can be seen in these types of products is that they can be applied directly to your skin. It can also be taken in pill form.
Another advantage of this substance is that it is commonly used for medical purposes. In recent years, it has been used to help treat seizure disorders, cancer, and arthritis. This is the reason why many people are choosing to use CBD products over conventional medications. In addition, it is very easy to purchase products that are made from this substance. You will not have to spend much money on a trip to the drugstore or the grocery store to find products that are infused with this amazing substance.
CBD Companies
There are several companies who are starting to realize the potential that CBD has for helping people feel better and stay healthy, so they are starting to sell their own line of products that are geared towards helping people with medical purposes. The best place to find these types of products is on the internet. All you need to do is enter a search term into any search engine and you will receive results that are specifically geared towards helping people treat ailments. that they might have as well as help relieve their symptoms.
With all of these benefits, it is easy to see that there is no reason not to take CBD. products that contain this amazing substance. If you are serious about feeling better and getting rid of unwanted side effects associated with certain medications, it is time that you consider giving it a try. The choice is yours.


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XGO garments are entirely made in the USA and are used by the US Army, US Special Forces, the FBI, the US Marine Corps, State police and many others. XGO's mantra is 'Athlete Tested, Combat Proven'. This is some of the best kit in the world.
The XGO Men's Flame Retardant Phase 1 Coyote Brown is a lightweight under garment featuring a blend of Modacrylic and rayon giving superior protection and flame retardance whilst keeping the wearer cool and comfortable over extended periods in warm climates.
'Phase 1 FR' : 'Lightweight, moisture-wicking garment that has superior flame-retardant properties. Designed for use in warmer weather'.
In high threat situations comfort and safety are the two most important aspects that clothing can provide an operator. XGO's Phase 1 FR garments are designed so that the user is kept cool and comfortable in intense heat. Adding the extra safety provided by fire retardance the blend of Modacrylic and Rayon gives the user peace of mind whilst working.
The FR treatment has inherent qualities which cannot be washed or worn out, and the Thermal Protective Performance values (after-flame, no-drip) exceed the USA's National Fire Protection Association standards (ASTM D6413).
The XGO Men's Flame Retardant Phase 1 Boxer Coyote Brown also includes Ag47 silver anti-microbial protection. Silver is legendary for its anti-microbial and anti-fungal properties and has been 'built-in' to XGO's products. As moisture passes through the fabric, Ag 47 Silver Anti-Microbials attack the bacteria contained in the perspiration and effectively eliminate odour and harmful bacteria--improving overall hygiene.
Ag47 silver anti-microbial protection keeps you odour-free allowing extended wear in endurance situations, and all of these properties are designed to endure for the life of the garment.
• Lightweight First Layer
• Modacrylic / Rayon Blend
• Flame-Retardant Garment
• Superior Moisture-Wicking
• Ag47 Anti-Microbial Protection
• Won't Shrink, Pick or Fade
• Durable and Breathable
• Extra Length


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Ad Campaign Calls on Christians to 'Love Your Neighbors' of All Faiths
In early August, a mosque in Joplin, Mo., burned to the ground. It was the second fire that damaged the facility this summer — the first, determined to be arson. In light of this attack and others like it across the country — including the heinous shooting at a Sikh gurudwara outside of Milwaukee that killed six worshippers —Sojourners called on our community to help us get the word out that we are called to love our neighbors. All of them.
The response was overwhelming. As a result of generous contributions, Sojourners not only took out an ad in The Joplin Globe, but also erected billboards with the same message, both in Joplin and in Oak Creek, Wis., three blocks from the Sikh gurudwara.
The message is simple. "Love your Muslim neighbors." "Love your Sikh neighbors."
It's not radical in language, but it is a radical love that Jesus extends to us and asks us to show others.
"It is amazing that loving our neighbor is such a radical statement, as it is foundational to the teachings of Jesus," said Rev. Steve Jerbi, pastor of All Peoples Church, which has been actively involved in responding to the shooting at the gurdwara. "Yet, the walls of division, fear, and even just knowing our neighbors is too often our reality. This statement reminds us, in light of both tragedy and in everyday life, that we are called to love our neighbors. This is a chance for Christians to continue to express not just our sympathy, but our love for sisters and brothers in the Sikh community."
Geoff Tunnicliffe, CEO and secretary general of the World Evangelical Alliance, said he is hopeful the billboards send a strong message to people of other faiths.
"Let there be no doubt: as Christians, we want to live in peace with Muslims, Sikhs, and with all men and women in this world. This is intrinsic to our religion and is essential to stories from the life of Jesus and in his teachings," Tunnicliffe said. "We want these billboards to communicate solidarity against violence and the desire to live peacefully with one another, regardless of faith tradition."
In light of other recent attacks against Muslim institutions in the Chicago metro — an acid attack outside a Muslim college preparatory school in Lombard, Ill., and an air rifle shooting outside a mosque in Morton Grove, Ill. — Sojourners intends to raise additional funds to spread the message to these communities.
The billboards pictured are located at the intersection of College Avenue and 13th Street in Oak Creek, and at the intersection of West 7th Street and South Schifferdecker Avenue in Joplin.
Originally posted on Sojourners.
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Black 1mm Leather Round Cord
by Paracord.comQUALITY - Our Genuine Leather Cord is soft, flexible and light weight, yet tough and strong. Perfect for crafting bracelets, bag straps, keyfobs, jewelry and so much more!
SPECS - Each color of our 1 mm Leather cord comes in 3 lengths: 25 meters (82 feet), 50m (164 feet) and 100m (328 feet). All are tightly wrapped on spools for easy use.
COLORS- Our Leather Cord come in 7 colors: Black, Light Brown, Orange, Raw (Natural), Pink, Red and Tahiki. All the colors, with Natural as the exception, is dyed, giving the cord a smooth, shiny finish.


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Right. So, somehow, Blogger decided I wanted every single link broken on my ETEV Geo-Posts Lexicon. I just spent the last hour telling it otherwise.
They worked when I tested them. If they're not working when you try them, please bring your baseball bats and join me in a Blogger Bashing Party, wherein we will completely trash the post that Blogger hated so much.
Muchas gracias to Silver Fox for catching the problem!
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Emile van der Does de Willebois, Senior Financial Sector Specialist at the World Bank, writes about a new report on the ever-more sophisticated methods used to hide bribes, stolen assets and other criminal proceeds from the World Bank's Stolen Assets Recovery Initiative.
It's easy to set up a company. If I want to start a business and limit my personal liability, all I have to do is fill out some forms, pay a registration fee and, presto, an entirely new, separate entity is born. I am no longer just Emile van der Does. I am also the 100% shareholder and director of ABC Ltd.
There might be other steps needed before you can actually start doing business, but the first step — the creation of a legal person — tends to be a simple, straightforward process, certainly in the world's financial centers.
On the whole that is a good thing: Impediments to free enterprise should be minimal. But the fact that I've now limited my liability should not allow me to hide my identity: people doing business with ABC Ltd. should still be aware that they're dealing with me – an actual person, not just a figment born of a piece of paper. But such transparency is not always the norm, which is where problems can start.
Released today by the Stolen Asset Recovery initiative (StAR) of the World Bank and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, "The Puppet Masters" explores how government officials hide ownership and control of corrupt assets behind constructions of paper. To paraphrase the famous English judge Lord Denning, these constructions are the puppets that dance to their master's bidding.
Virtually all grand corruption cases involve a company, trust, or foundation ("corporate vehicles" in the report's terminology) that has been created to conceal the beneficial owner's identity.
Take the case of Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, former governor of Nigeria's Bayelsa State. He used companies with innocuous sounding names — "Santolina Investment Corporation" (incorporated in the Seychelles) and "Salomon and Peters Limited" (incorporated in the British Virgin Islands) — to conceal his beneficial interest in and ownership of monetary and real estate assets he acquired through bribery and corruption.
Or Bruce Rappaport, former Ambassador of Antigua and Barbuda to Israel and Russia, who bought an "off the shelf" company called Offshore Services Limited, renamed it IHI Debt Settlement, and used that entity to defraud his government of US$ 14 million. Or US lobbyists Jack Abramoff and Michael Scanlon, who set up the American International Center (incorporated in Delaware), a supposed think tank that in reality was a sham created to divert funds to entities they owned and controlled.
The list goes on. And a system that allows for the participation of corporate vehicles in our financial traffic, without insisting on transparency of who is driving them, allows such corruption to continue.
So it appears that instruments intended to facilitate business, encourage charity or limit liability can also be used for illegal ends. How can we combat this and ensure adequate transparency? We all know that a puppet can only dance if someone is pulling the strings. It follows that identifying the puppet master behind such corrupt schemes is a crucial step. How do we do that?
Our report recommends that governments pursue several lines of attack to address this problem. First, governments should analyze the situation in their country to determine which entities are most often abused and how. This information should be made public.
Those dealing with the corporate vehicles– banks, legal advisers, accountants – should conduct proper due diligence when establishing a business relationship and find out who pulls the strings.
Is the director the real director or is he a nominee for someone else? Who is behind the shareholding company? Does the listed shareholder take instructions from someone else? They should not be allowed to remain willfully blind to corrupt operators.
Meanwhile, governments should increase financial support to their corporate registries, improve expertise and make sure that those registries contain a minimum standard of information – notably on directors, shareholders and relevant officers.
There are limits to what regulation can do, however. Sophisticated criminals can beat nearly any system. Therefore law enforcement needs to step up its game. Financial and legal literacy of investigators and prosecutors needs to improve. They need to be able to distinguish a legitimate legal structure that makes economic sense, from one that is designed to conceal and confuse. They also need to be able to understand the ways these structures can be manipulated.
In The Puppet Masters, we are proposing key moves to re-engineer the infrastructure upon which corrupt money flows rely. To stop criminals from gaming the system, governments and the private sector must take action on several fronts. StAR will continue its work to return the issue to the international agenda. I hope you'll join us in keeping the debate alive.
Emile van der Does de Willebois started his career working for the Office of the Prosecutor at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague. Subsequently he worked in private practice specializing in banking and securities law. He joined the World Bank in 2004, and has been involved in technical assistance to Eastern Asian Pacific countries on Anti Money Laundering and Counter Terrorism Financing (AML/CFT). He specializes in issues of abuse of legal entities, beneficial ownership and the use of non-profit entities for terrorist purposes.


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Comet Hale-Bopp
Hale-Bopp continues to offer new surprises as two astronomers report of their study of the comet. Using the Hubble Space Telescope and the International Ultraviolet Explorer, the astronomers did a year-long study on Hale-Bopp to find that there are distinctly different ices in the comet's nucleus, the nucleus is huge, and the nucleus is extremely active.
The comet's nucleus seems to be erupting upon itself. Astronomers witnessed the comet spew out dust in intermittent bursts. The surface seems to be an incredibly dynamic place, with 'vents' being turned on and off as new patches of icy material are rotated into sunlight for the first time.
The nucleus' structure itself is more complex than astronomers had thought. Astonomers theorized that trace gases were contained within water ice. According to Hubble Space Telescope observations, however, Hale-Bopp's nucleus has trace components contained within their own ice structure, with water ice remaining separate and uniform.
In addition, the nucleus is tremendously large. Astronomers have estimated Hale-Bopp's nucleus to be 19-25 miles (30-40 kilometers) in diameter. Comets are thought to have a nucleus of about 3 miles (5 kilometers) on average.


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Hi everyone,
I'm back today with my
another flower card
made it from beautiful Paper collection
Craft & You Design - Beautiful Day
I decorated it with my flowers - as always ;)
To make my flowers I used
and die Craft Passion - Flowers Set 05
I used cutting die Craft Passion - Leaves
My card I decorated with one of gorgeous laser cut chipboard
I added some 3D foam pads underneath
I hope you like my cards. Don't forget to visit Monika's SHOP where you can find
beautiful papers, laser cut chipboards and much much more.
Thank you for stopping by,


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With Stage 4 restrictions in Melbourne, it has been announced that household construction will be allowed to continue with up to 5 people on site.
MSF Sports will continue to operate building courts, while taking all safety precautions and social distancing measures required.
If you have any questions or enquiries, we would be happy to take your call.


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It's a rite of late summer: When Rex Ryan starts making bombastic statements, we know that training camp is right around the corner. He's the NFL equivalent of Punxsutawney Phil.
Rex has learned not to make Super Bowl promises anymore, but he still has plenty of self-belief in his skills as a coach.
"Do I think that I'm a great coach? I absolutely know I'm a great coach," Ryan told Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News. "But it's not just about me. What makes a great coach is the people that surround you, the people that are with you every day."
After a relatively quiet offseason, it's almost like Rex decided his team needed to hear some "old Rex" to get fired up before camp.
"Somebody asked me if we focus on New England. Bull----," Ryan told the New York Post. "We're focused on us. We're focused on us and how are we going to be better. I have to be honest, I don't worry about them. They need to worry about us. I think that's really where we're at now."
Ryan did one of his best jobs in New York by scraping out eight wins last year. He's said publicly that winning eight games again would be a disappointment, but, with huge questions at cornerback and the same old questions on offense, eight wins is no guarantee.
"You know what? I'm not as good in certain areas," Ryan admitted to the Daily News. "I get it. No question, I get it. Are there better offensive coaches than me? Yeah."
Ryan's biggest problem this year: expectations. His roster is flawed, but he probably needs to show progress in the standings to keep his job.
That's life with Rex in New York -- and in much of the NFL. Even the great coaches are year-to-year.
The latest "Around The League Podcast" broke out a monster team-by-team AFC training camp preview.


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Add a dash of individuality and style to your home with our curated collection of stylish vases.Lovingly curated to ensure the perfect pairing to our floral offering, each of our vases have been selected for their practical nature as well as their uber stylish appearance.
Short on time but not on taste? Buy one of our luxury gift bouquets, each designed by our expert London florists. Each designer bouquet is designed and created by our team of expert London florists using only the finest, seasonal flowers to ensure joy upon delivery.
Our seasonal selection of floral bouquets are all packaged in our signature, sustainable wrapping and delivered in our stylish bloom boxes. We want to ensure your floral gift arrives looking perfect, so all our designs are sent hydrated with a personalised greetings card. We deliver to all mainland UK addresses so pick your favourite, select your delivery date and our fabulous London florists will do the rest!
Axminster is a market town that is built on a hill overlooking the River Axe and is located in the county of Devon. This ancient town lies in the beautiful Axe Valley, designated an Area of Outstanding Beauty, so you should be prepared to be amazed by the beautiful surroundings when you visit. The town dates back to before 300 B.C. and was recorded Domesday Book. Axminster is, of course, most famous for Axminster Carpets. The company has been a huge staple in town for over 250 years and is still successful today, providing carpets for such establishments as Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, and other royalty-owned addresses.
Such beauty, and such royal connections, demand similar service. ByBloom.co.uk is the preeminent online florist in Axminster. For that something special event or that impulse event to celebrate living, it's ByBloom.co.uk! You can pick a bouquet, or create the perfect bouquet yourself using our 'build-your-own-bouquet' facility. We have the best, freshest and most beautiful flowers online, so select a bunch from our 'market stall, and we have a meaning filter to ensure your flowers convey the sentiment you would like to portray. Pick, pay, and relax – we will make sure your gift reaches its destination as fresh and as beautiful as you expect from a premium quality flowers delivery service – and if you wish it delivered the next day: not a problem
So, not only is ordering flowers through ByBloom.co.uk convenient, it is fun and rewarding. With our fantastic flowers and unrivalled customer service, you won't be disappointed with ByBloom.co.uk! Oh, did we say all of our creations are 100% plastic-free and entirely sustainable? Well, we've said it now!
Bloom are a flower revolution; we are the UK's first 100% plastic-free and sustainable online florist. So much more than a stylish online flower delivery company sending fresh flowers throughout mainland United Kingdom, we ensure that every order is delivered using 100% sustainable packaging to prove that flowers don't have to cost the earth; or your pocket for that matter! We offer the very best value luxury flowers available online with our online florist shop. To read more about our sustainable and environmental credentials.
Bloom were created by florist to the stars Larry Walshe and offer the ultimate destination for buying fresh flowers online in the UK. Bloom are fashionable, Bloom are ethical, and Bloom offer the freshest flowers possible to ensure you always receive joy with every order. Each time you buy flowers online, your order is processed from our London studio with experienced florists who really care about the designs they create. Every floral bouquet is created by hand to ensure a luxury gift that will be remembered forever. We send flowers throughout the whole of the United Kingdom using DPD on a nationwide next-day delivery service to ensure that your flowers arrive as fresh as the day they were cut in the field. We also offer a 7 days a week delivery service; that's right, we deliver nationwide on both Saturday and Sunday too!
Are you tired of buying flowers online only to discover that they arrive looking nothing like the picture you saw advertised? We think so. That's why we at ByBloom.co.uk have created a pioneering new way to order a bouquet of flowers. Using our create-your-own bouquet service, you can pick the size of your bouquet, the flowers you want to include and the style of design in 3 easy steps. It's just like walking into the local flower shop but with us, you don't need to leave your desk! You design the bouquet you would like to send as a gift and we will make it look beyond beautiful. Prices start at £44.00 and we send flowers throughout the whole of the United Kingdom so today has never been a better time to say "Happy Birthday" or "Happy Anniversary" to someone you love.
Need flowers, fast? Our Market Flowers collection has a curated range of premium quality flowers ready to order for delivery anywhere in the UK. Our stylish range of blooms online represent the best each season has to offer. We buy flowers from the finest growers in both England & Europe to ensure you always have the highest quality blooms in our home or office. Just like visiting your local flower shop, pick the stems you would like and we will deliver them direct to your doorstep. We deliver 7 days a week, including Saturday & Sunday using our nationwide next-day courier DPD so you can rest assured that when you need a floral fix, we are here to help!
The ByBloom.co.uk Flower Subscription is the ultimate way to treat yourself or someone you love throughout the year. Every week or month you will receive a box of blooms costing only £35.00 for you to arrange at home. We only ever supply the highest-quality flowers and award-winning London florist Larry Walshe has designed a calendar of beautiful flower selections for you to enjoy through Spring, Summer, Autumn & Winter. Each week you will receive a new flower type, meaning that by the end of the year, you will have learnt lots about floristry. We deliver our Flower Subscription using DPD, the nation's favourite next-day delivery courier to ensure that your flowers always arrive looking wonderful. With lots of useful hints, tips & video guides available to view online, you will become a floristry expert in no time!
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(1993) for Solo Flute (www.nb.no) (dur: 3:00)
Composed for the opening of an art-exibition
Composed for the opening of an art-exibition
(1993) for Piano (www.mic.no) (dur: ca. 6)
Written for James Clapperton.
The commission was initiated by Geir Johnson and first performance was at Music Factory in Bergen.
The Hot-house theory explains why earth is such a good place for growth and life. But if human activity continue to send hugh amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, it will cause a negative effect: It gets too warm.
A Hothouse is also a place where conditions are perfect for growth. In this case a small motif becomes a piece of music.


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One of the surprises at tonight's PlayStation 4 reveal was the announcement that Blizzard's previously PC-only Diablo III will be coming to both PS4 and PS3.
This has led plenty of disgruntled Diablo III players to make themselves heard on Blizzard's official forums. While many simply voice disappointment about seeing a PC-exclusive ported to console, user SmashCrunch articulates a broader, more astute gripe: That it's entirely possible that Diablo III was built for consoles from the start.
Diablo 3 was setup to be a console game.
The reason only 4 players are allowed into a game is for 4 controllers.
The reason the quests make you walk in a linear closed circuit as opposed to big open worlds, is to keep your buds next to you on the same screen.
The reason for no skill points or complicated number crunching? To make console players happy.
The reason you have 4-5 skills on your bar at once? Very easy to use an Xbox/Ps3 controller to use skills.
The reason no runes / complicated item mechanics exists. Simply wouldn't be fun for console gamers.
The reason you can't host a named game? Auto join for console users.
The reason for achievements in game? It's popular among console / COD fans.
The reason for passive skills? Perks like Call of Duty uses. Everyone unlocks perks and uses their favourite ones.
PC gamers are just beta testing for the console release so it wont be full of bugs. That's how ActiBlizz intends to make the real money.
Also explains why the game doesn't have VoIP for Pc gamer chat.
Diablo 3 is the modern Call of Duty of ARPG's.
There are some users in the thread offering counterpoints, but it's hard not to see the truth in some of those observations.
Find more discussion over at the Diablo III forums.


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Israel Plans 1,400 New Homes for Settlers
Israel on Friday announced plans to build 1,400 new homes in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, days after U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry visited the region to push peace talks in which settlements represent a major hurdle.
Although widely expected, the announcement angered some of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's own coalition partners and infuriated the Palestinians, who accused Israel of seeking to derail the peace negotiations.
"The recent announcement shows Israel's clear commitment to the destruction of peace efforts and the imposition of an apartheid regime," chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said in a statement.
"(This) is a test for the U.S. administration's ability to hold Israel accountable for actively sabotaging their efforts for peace."
Friday's move followed a pattern whereby Israel issues new tenders for building shortly after releasing Palestinian prisoners.
Some 26 Palestinians were freed at the end of last month, the third batch to be let go according to the terms of a deal brokered by Washington to secure the resumption of peace talks last July following a three-year hiatus.
Israel's Housing Ministry said it planned to construct 801 housing units in the West Bank and another 600 in East Jerusalem, all on land seized in the 1967 war and which Palestinians want for their future state.
The ministry also re-issued tenders for 582 units in East Jerusalem that had previously failed to attract bids from contractors.
Anti-settlement watchdog Peace Now said that Friday's announcement meant that since direct talks had resumed last year, Israel had unveiled plans for some 5,349 new homes in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Netanyahu, whose government includes pro-settler parties, has defended the expansion by saying the tenders were for homes in blocs that would remain Israeli in any future peace accord.
His second largest coalition ally, the centrist Yesh Atid party, criticised Friday's move, however.
"This is a bad idea which Yesh Atid will do all it can to ensure remains just an idea that will not be implemented," said party leader Yair Lapid, who serves as finance minister.
Most countries consider Israel's settlements illegal.
The Palestinians won an upgrade to their U.N. status in 2012 from "entity" to "non-member state" in a vote perceived as a de facto recognition of statehood and have threatened to join the International Criminal Court to confront Israel there.
However, they agreed last year to suspend any actions at the United Nations in exchange for the release of scores of Palestinians and a resumption of talks.
A previous round of negotiations broke down in 2010 in a dispute over settlement construction and since their revival this year, peace talks have shown little sign of progress.
Well over 500,000 Jewish settlers live in East Jerusalem and the West Bank.


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Electronic Medical Records: Last Year's Silver Bullet
I was skeptical in the extreme when President Obama and other PPACA supporters claimed so much savings would come from electronic medical records. While in theory good, portable records might prevent some accidents and streamline care in certain emergency situations where there might not be time to take a full history, my actual experience with these systems did not give me much confidence. And it just sounded like yet another politician's silver bullet (HMO's were another such bullet 20 years ago).
This was a pretty powerful article about medical records and patient care.
There is no point in trying to automate the diagnostic process with an expert system AND retain the 12-year-trained doctor in the room. It strikes me as one or the other. Perhaps these systems are close to working fine and doctors can see themselves getting automated out of a job and this type of job is their last-ditch attempt to stop them. Or perhaps the systems really suck and add a lot of extra time and cost. It will be interesting when this has a chance to be fully studied.


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AppLike APK Game Free Download Find the best new apps and games with AppLike! We recommend the best apps & games for you, and you can earn rewards when you try them out! With AppLike, you're able to find the hottest apps and games without searching through the Play Store. We provide you the opportunity to discover the best mobile apps AND earn real rewards & gifts! AppLike is the best app that pays you money! Download AppLike and discover the best reward app for Android!
No more endless searching for apps & gaming! AppLike recommends games and apps that match your preferences – at no charge. If you try them, you'll get a small reward. Strategy games, brain teasers or action gaming, we recommend gaming apps that really suit you!
AppLike is simple, totally free and we tailor recommendations to what you like. You will find the right games for you for free – without lengthy searches in the Play Store! The best part is, you earn gift rewards!
Download AppLike now for free, get custom app recommendations and exchange your collected points (mCoins) for great gift rewards! It's as easy as that! No other app makes getting free rewards easier. Of all the apps that pay you money, AppLike has the highest payouts, best rewards and best ways to earn bonuses. Enjoy fun apps and gaming while earning a reward!
You can collect mCoins with each game app from our app recommendations. Then you can exchange these mCoins for great rewards (e.g. PayPal credit or gift cards for Amazon, Spotify, Netflix or Google Playstore)! Rewarding has never been easier!
How does collecting mCoins in AppLike work?
It's easy!
1. Download one of our recommended game apps for free and give it a try.
2. For each app recommendation you try out you will get mCoins. The longer you actively use an app, the more mCoins you will get, and the bigger the gift & reward!
3. Exchange the mCoins you have collected for your favorite rewards like real money or gift cards for Amazon, Spotify, Netflix and more!
With AppLike, you will get app recommendations based on your interests and on apps that you have already installed. Of course all apps that we recommend are FREE OF CHARGE and offer gifts and rewards for trying them!
Sign up for AppLike, collect your first mCoins and grab your reward! With our app recommendations you will not only discover exciting game apps, by trying out these free apps you will also get great rewards. Earn real money with the best free rewards app!
Your friends also want great gift rewards? Invite them with our invite code and earn bonus mCoins. Start right away and get rewards for discovering and trying complimentary games and apps. Rewarding has never been easier, and gaming with friends has never been so fun!
– Great app recommendations – 100% free of charge and tailored to your taste
– Have fun and simplify your daily routine by using the apps
– Exchange your collected mCoins for great rewards
– Rewarding you for discovering cool apps!


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Colins Lozada
Moore Ruble Yudell Architects
Moore Ruble Yudell Architects
Over forty years ago Moore Ruble Yudell began much the same way that it currently works, as a spirited collaboration. The founding partners—Charles Moore, John Ruble, and Buzz Yudell—shared a passion for an original architecture that grows out of an intense dialogue with places and people, celebrates human activity, and enhances and nurtures community. These values continue to guide their process, providing the core principles for a wide-ranging exploration of planning and architecture.
With an office of some sixty people, Moore Ruble Yudell has been able to meet the challenges of complex programs and contemporary project delivery, while maintaining a close involvement by the partners. John Ruble and Buzz Yudell work in collaboration with principals Jeanne Chen, James Mary O'Connor, Neal Matsuno and Mario Violich.
As the practice has expanded—both programmatically and geographically—it has grown in its technical capability and its skill in leveraging the multiple talents of the firm, often bringing in increasingly specialized design and engineering consultants. Moore Ruble Yudell has formed successful national and international alliances, gaining flexibility to effectively address the needs of large and small-scale projects with a global reach.


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Is it true that a spontaneously light-emitting atom changes its lifetime if it is put between two parallel plates that are so near that they attract each other through the Casimir effect?
Thus: does the Casimir effect, and the changes in the vacuum state it induces, influence spontanenous emission?
If so, who measured this effect for the first time? Where can I read about it?


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This article is also available and sold as a booklet.
This sermon series includes the following messages:
The following is an excerpt from The MacArthur New Testament Commentary on Colossians 4.
Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned, as it were, with salt, so that you may know how you should respond to each person. (Colossians 4:6)
Consistency of life must be followed by consistency of speech. Paul is not speaking here of preaching the gospel, but general conversation. Believers' speech must always be with grace, as was Christ's (Luke 4:22). There is no place for those things that characterize the unredeemed mouth. Whether undergoing persecution, stress, difficulty, or injustice, whether with your spouse, children, believers, or unbelievers—in all circumstances believers are to make gracious speech a habit. To speak with grace means to say what is spiritual, wholesome, fitting, kind, sensitive, purposeful, complementary, gentle, truthful, loving, and thoughtful. Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:29, "Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, that it may give grace to those who hear."
The speech of the new man must also be seasoned… with salt. It is not only to be gracious, but also to have an effect. Salt can sting when rubbed into a wound (cf. Prov. 27:6). It also prevents corruption. Believers' speech should act as a purifying influence, rescuing conversation from the filth that so often engulfs it. Salt also adds flavor, and the speech of the new man should add charm and wit to conversation.
Believers must also know how to respond to each person. They must know how to say the right thing at the right time. In Peter's words, they must be "ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence" (1 Pet. 3:15).
The speech of the new man is vitally important: "If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well" (James 3:2). Unlike the ungodly, who say "Our lips are our own; who is lord over us?" (Ps. 12:4), we as believers should echo the prayer of the psalmist in Psalm 141:3: "Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips."


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Whoever being engaged in the business of betting or wagering knowingly uses a wire communication facility for the transmission in interstate or foreign commerce of bets or wagers or information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers on any sporting event or contest, or for the transmission of a wire communication which entitles the recipient to receive money or credit as a result of bets or wagers, or for information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the transmission in interstate or foreign commerce of information for use in news reporting of sporting events or contests, or for the transmission of information assisting in the placing of bets or wagers on a sporting event or contest from a State or foreign country where betting on that sporting event or contest is legal into a State or foreign country in which such betting is legal.
Nothing contained in this section shall create immunity from criminal prosecution under any laws of any State.
When any common carrier, subject to the jurisdiction of the Federal Communications Commission, is notified in writing by a Federal, State, or local law enforcement agency, acting within its jurisdiction, that any facility furnished by it is being used or will be used for the purpose of transmitting or receiving gambling information in interstate or foreign commerce in violation of Federal, State or local law, it shall discontinue or refuse, the leasing, furnishing, or maintaining of such facility, after reasonable notice to the subscriber, but no damages, penalty or forfeiture, civil or criminal, shall be found against any common carrier for any act done in compliance with any notice received from a law enforcement agency. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prejudice the right of any person affected thereby to secure an appropriate determination, as otherwise provided by law, in a Federal court or in a State or local tribunal or agency, that such facility should not be discontinued or removed, or should be restored.
(Added Pub. L. 87–216, § 2, Sept. 13, 1961, 75 Stat. 491; amended Pub. L. 100–690, title VII, § 7024, Nov. 18, 1988, 102 Stat. 4397; Pub. L. 101–647, title XII, § 1205(g), Nov. 29, 1990, 104 Stat. 4831; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, § 330016(1)(L), Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147.)


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FreeBSD is an advanced open source operating system for x86-compatible, AMD-compatible, UltraSPARC, IA-64, PC-98, and ARM architectures. It is derived from BSD, the version of UNIX developed at the University of California, Berkeley. FreeBSD is developed and maintained by a large team of individuals, with additional platforms in various stages of development.
The FreeBSD project supports and sponsors FreeBSD, the free operating system of choice for many companies due to its business-friendly user license. A significant number of companies run their entire IT networks on FreeBSD, including Yahoo! and Pair Networks. The Juniper routers and NetApp storage appliances are based on FreeBSD as well.
At SCALE the FreeBSD Project will provide demonstrations of the PC-BSD and FreeBSD operating systems running on various types of hardware. PC-BSD is a fully functional operating system based on FreeBSD 7.0-stable that is geared for the desktop user, although it is also suitable for use as a server operating system.
The latest version of PC-BSD, Fibonacci, has improved support and stability for Wine (a compatibility layer for running Windows programs), improved support with the Firewall Manager GUI, improved PBI installation support, and an improved PBI thumbnailer that displays embedded icons for large installers properly. Other new built-in features include KDE Version 4.1, dual-head monitor configuration support via the X GUI setup tool, a new sound-detection method reporting via GUI any problems with auto-detect, and an optional filesystem selector that supports UFS2, UFS2+Softupdates, UFS2+Journaling, and ZFS.
SCALE attendees will profit from presentations about the benefits of running the FreeBSD and PC-BSD operating systems on their computer hardware. We will also have a variety of tradeshow goodies to give away, such as FreeBSD 6.3 and 7.0 CD box sets, PC-BSD 7.0 Fibonacci DVD sleeves, FreeBSD and PC-BSD T-shirts, FreeBSD CD holders, FreeBSD daemon horns, and FreeBSD daemon plushy dolls.


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Justin Trudeau says his government hopes to make legal changes that will cement his transformation of the Senate into a more independent, non-partisan chamber, making it harder for a future prime minister to turn back the clock.
The prime minister says his government will amend the Parliament of Canada Act — the law that spells out the powers and privileges of MPs and senators — to better reflect the new reality in the upper house, where most senators now sit as independents unaffiliated with any political party.
"We're going to try to make it fair," Trudeau said in a year-end roundtable interview with the Ottawa bureau of The Canadian Press. "We're going to try to do it before the election."
Doing it before next fall's election is critically important for independent senators, who fear Trudeau's reforms could be easily reversed should the Liberals fail to win re-election.
Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer has said that if becomes prime minister, he would revert to the previous practice of making overtly partisan appointments, naming only Conservatives to the upper house.
Trudeau kicked senators out of the Liberal caucus in 2014. Since taking office in 2015, he's named only senators recommended by an arm's-length advisory body in a bid to return the Senate to its intended role as an independent chamber of sober second thought.
Of the 105 senators, 54 are now independents who have banded together for greater clout in the Independent Senators' Group. Another 31 are Conservatives, 10 are Liberal-independents and 10 are unaffiliated. The Conservatives are the only remaining overtly partisan group in the chamber.
READ MORE: Trudeau names four new senators, filling every seat in the Senate
Yet the Parliament of Canada Act recognizes only two partisan caucuses in the Senate: the governing party caucus and the Opposition caucus, both of which are entitled to research funds, dedicated time to debate bills, memberships on committees and a role in the day-to-day decisions about Senate business, such as when to adjourn debate.
Senators have agreed on the fly to some accommodation of the growing ranks of independents, giving them some research funds and committee roles. But the leadership of the ISG has argued that their role must be explicitly spelled out and guaranteed in the Parliament of Canada Act. And, since the change would involve allocating financial resources, they say it can't be initiated by the Senate, only by the government in the House of Commons.
Sen. Raymonde St. Germain, deputy leader of the ISG, said amending the act is the only way to give independent senators a "permanent voice" and to "secure this essential reform for an independent and non-partisan Senate."
"The reform that Prime Minister Trudeau very courageously announced and implemented … has to be completed," she said in an interview. "It won't come from within the Senate. The only way to complete it, to have it finished, is to amend the Parliament of Canada Act."
Trudeau said he's pleased with the way the reformed Senate has operated, even though independent-minded senators are now more prone to amending government bills, which has slowed down the legislative process somewhat and occasionally sparked fears — unrealized thus far — that the Senate could defeat legislation outright.
"Canadians have been able to see the benefits and the thoughtful amendments and engagement they've had with bills in a way that I think has been very positive. I think removing partisanship in a significant way from the Senate has been good for our democracy, good for institutions," he said.
As for Scheer, Trudeau said: "If he really wants to go back to the kind of partisanship and patronage that we were able to do away with, well, that's something that he's going to have to explain."
Just this week, however, Trudeau appointed two new senators with strong Liberal connections: a former Liberal premier of Yukon, Pat Duncan, and Nova Scotia mental-health expert Stanley Kutcher, who ran for the Liberals in the 2011 election and lost.
"I don't think that membership in any given political party should ban them from being able to be thoughtful, independent senators who are not answerable to me but answerable to the values they have," Trudeau said, adding, "I'm sure we have also appointed people who've donated to the NDP or donated to the Conservative party."
Conservatives have repeatedly questioned just how non-partisan the independent senators really are, noting that most seem to share Trudeau's values — a charge Trudeau did not deny.
"I'm not going to pick people who are completely offline with where I think my values or many Canadians' values are," he said. "A future prime minister of a different political stripe will certainly be able to appoint people … who might have a slightly different ideological bent. I think that's going to naturally happen in our system."
Nevertheless, he said the institution is better for the fact that most senators are not answerable to the prime minister and don't sit in partisan caucuses "to plot political strategy."
Joan Bryden, The Canadian Press


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GEOS-Chem Newsletter December 2010
Dear GEOS-Chem Users,
Just in time for Christmas...the December 2010 GEOS-Chem Newsletter!
Warmest wishes for a Happy Holiday Season and a Wonderful New Year 2011!
Bob Yantosca and Claire Carouge
What's new in the GEOS-Chem community
The 5th International GEOS-Chem Meeting
Harvard University will host the 5th International GEOS-Chem Meeting from May 2-5, 2011. Please mark your calendars!
Please see the official meeting web page, http://meeting.geos-chem.org, for:
- Registration instructions
- Information about hotels near Harvard University
- Contact information
Be sure to check back here for the latest information!
We invite you to read the preliminary meeting agenda (subject to change). To help with your travel plans, please note that:
- An icebreaker social for young scientists will be organized on the evening of Sunday May 1. This will be an opportunity for graduate students and postdocs to meet in a relaxed atmosphere prior to the meeting.
- The first two-and-a-half days of the meeting (Monday May 2 at 8:30 am to Wednesday May 4 at 12 pm) will be devoted to general scientific sessions and should be of broad interest to the atmospheric composition research community.
- The final day of the meeting (Wednesday afternoon to Thursday May 5 at 12:30 pm) will be devoted to working groups and GEOS-Chem community business. This should be of most interest to GEOS-Chem users.
- Thursday afternoon events will include the GEOS-Chem steering committee meeting (open to all) and a GEOS-Chem model clinic. The model clinic will be led by the GEOS-Chem Support Team to initiate new users as well as answer questions from experienced users.
The scientific sessions will include a mix of oral and poster presentations. All sessions will be plenary. Due to the nature of the meeting, priority for oral presentations will have to be given to GEOS-Chem users. Poster presentations are open to all and will be scheduled to receive a lot of attention.
We look forward to seeing you in May!
New and updated wiki pages
For your convenience, we have updated the following wiki pages. We ask that you take a moment and peruse these pages. You may find the exact answer to your question!
- Implementation of RETRO Anthropogenic Emissions (New page!)
- Notes regarding vertical grids
- MERRA met fields
- Machine issues and portability
- Secondary organic aerosols
- Common GEOS-Chem error messages
- Setting up GEOS-Chem nested grid simulations
- Dynamic tropopause
- Mass Flux (ND24/25/26)
- GEOS-Chem supported platforms and compilers
GEOS-Chem Support Team
Claire Carouge continues to provide support for GEOS-Chem from her location in Canberra. We ask that you continue to send your requests for GEOS-Chem support to the email@example.com email address. This will forward your request to both Claire and Bob.
Winter recess schedule
Bob Yantosca and Claire Carouge will be unavailable during Harvard's winter recess (Dec 23, 2010 thru Jan 2, 2011). Therefore, you should not expect a quick turnaround for support requests during the Christmas-New Year's week.
Bob will also be unavailable on Jan 6, 2011 (personal day) and Jan 13, 2011 (jury duty). Please plan accordingly.
GEOS-Chem Steering Committee
The next GEOS-Chem Steering Committee telecon date is Tuesday, January 25th, 2011 @ 10:30 ET (15:30 GMT). Contact your Working Group chairpersons if you have any items that you would address to the Steering Committee.
We invite you to read the minutes from the September 21st Steering Committee Meeting.
GEOS-Chem Working Groups
We invite all GEOS-Chem users (especially new users) to join a Working Group and sign up for the relevant email list. Working Groups are designed to foster discussion between GEOS-Chem users who are doing research in similar areas.
Each GEOS-Chem user should also post a short description of their project(s) on the relevant Working Group wiki page. Please remove any obsolete projects, add new ones, and review the work planned by other groups. This will allow the Working Group Chairpersons to be informed about the type of research that is being conducted by individual GEOS-Chem users while avoiding duplication of effort.
GEOS-Chem model development update
GEOS-Chem v9-01-01
GEOS-Chem v9-01-01 will be the next version to be released. It will contain the following updates:
- Compatibility with MERRA met fields (GEOS-Chem Support Team)
- Modified algorithms for convective updraft scavenging and wet deposition (H. Amos, B. Corbitt, Q. Wang et al)
- Bug fix: Restore capability to start GEOS-Chem from times other than 0 GMT (GEOS-Chem Support Team)
- Minor fixes for timeseries diagnostics
- Bug fixes for ship emissions (Geert Vinken)
- Updated SO2 emissions from volcanoes (Jenny Fisher)
- Improved automatic code documentation with ProTeX. (GEOS-Chem Support Team)
- Other minor bug fixes
We are currently resolving a parallelization/segmentation fault issue with the non-local PBL scheme. This should be fixed imminently. Once this issue has been resolved, we will start the benchmarking process.
We plan to run the 1-month benchmarks with both GEOS-5 and MERRA met fields. We will also run the 1-year benchmarks with GEOS-5 and MERRA in order to validate GEOS-Chem against observations. We hope to have the benchmarking process completed shortly after the holidays.
MERRA reanalysis met fields
The GEOS-Chem Support Team has started the process of modifying GEOS-Chem for use with the MERRA met field product. MERRA is a 30-year reanalysis done with GMAO's GEOS-5.2.0 GCM. For the latest information about MERRA, please the following wiki pages:
- List of MERRA met fields used by GEOS-Chem
- MERRA implementation details
Data availability
The GEOS-Chem Support Team has started to download and regrid the MERRA data for GEOS-Chem. At present we have downloaded the following time periods.
- 2008: full year 4° x 5°
- 1982-2005: full year 4° x 5°
- 1981: December 4° x 5°
We plan to obtain the full 30-year MERRA archive (1979-2010). At present, we are only regridding the data to 4° x 5° due to disk storage limitations at Harvard. After a planned storage upgrade we will have the capacity to also store the 2° x 2.5° MERRA data as well.
At the present pace, we estimate that to complete regridding of the entire 30-year MERRA data archive to 4° x 5° by early January 2011.
MERRA data subsetting
Several of you have asked us about how to obtain the "raw" 0.5° x 0.666° MERRA met field data for your own research projects. NASA's GES-DISC department has created a user interface from which you can request "subsetted" data files (i.e. data files that have been trimmed down to a specific geographic region and/or contain a reduced number of data fields). You can then download the subsetted files via FTP file transfer to your own disk space.
For more information, please see the NASA GES-DISC user interface for requesting subsetted MERRA data.
In the pipeline
The following updates will be added into GEOS-Chem following the v9-01-01 release.
Item | Author(s) | Status |
Add scavenging by snow | Qiaoqiao Wang | Slated for inclusion into GEOS-Chem v9-01-02. |
Bromine chemistry mechanism | Justin Parella | Substantially complete; Slated for inclusion into GEOS-Chem v9-01-02. |
Updated stratospheric chemistry from GMI prod/loss rates | Lee Murray | Completed; Awaiting inclusion into v9-01-02 |
Updated vertical emission profiles for lightning NOx | Lee Murray | Completed; Awaiting inclusion into v9-01-02 |
Updated aircraft emissions | Lee Murray | Slated for inclusion into v9-01-02 |
Implementation of RETRO Anthropogenic Emissions | Wes Reinhart | Slated for inclusion into v9-01-02 or v9-01-03 |
APM aerosol microphysics | Fangqun Yu | Code has been given to the G-C Support Team; Slated for inclusion into v9-01-03 |
For a complete list of outstanding code updates, please see our GEOS-Chem model development priorities page.
Column code update
An ESMF Gridded Component has been created which calls the GEOS-Chem column chemistry routines. Some key bugs have now been fixed and work to finalize the interface has begun. Bob is currently testing to make sure that the column chemistry code running within the ESMF environment returns the same output as when driven in a GEOS-Chem test environment. The work is ongoing.
At present, column code development is on the back burner due to the pressing need to modify GEOS-Chem to be driven by the MERRA reanalysis product from GMAO.
GEOS-Chem reference
Please take a moment to review your group's entry on the GEOS-Chem People and Projects web page. Kindly inform the GEOS-Chem Support Team if anyone has recently joined or left your research group.
Be sure to send all new journal article submissions to the GEOS-Chem support team at email@example.com. We will post your papers on the GEOS-Chem Publications page.
We invite you to consult our Guidelines for Offering Co-authorship and GEOS-Chem Code Development History web pages if you are unsure how to give credit to GEOS-Chem developers.
We encourage all GEOS-Chem code developers and users to check the wiki frequently, as this is the place where the latest information about GEOS-Chem will be posted. The wiki is designed to be a two-way street of communication. Users should feel free to add content to the wiki pages that are most closely related to their research.
In particular, the GEOS-Chem Support Team has started a new effort to make sure that all 3rd-party code and data that is submitted into GEOS-Chem has a corresponding wiki page. This will ensure that all information can be shared transparently.
Please see the Recent Changes wiki page to see which wiki pages have been updated.
Finally, if you have not already done so, consider signing up for automatic wiki notification. You will be updated whenever someone modifies the GEOS-Chem wiki...you'll never miss a discussion!
Subscribing to the GEOS-Chem email lists
We use several GEOS-Chem email lists to share information among the user community:
To subscribe to any of the GEOS-Chem lists, send an email to:
To unsubscribe from any of the GEOS-Chem lists, send an email to:
where LISTNAME is the name of the intended email list (e.g. geos-chem, geos-chem-adjoint etc.). You can leave the subject and body of the email blank if you wish. You will receive a confirmation email from the system.
NOTE: To prevent spam, the GEOS-Chem email lists will reject mail from unrecognized addresses. When sending an email message to a list, make sure that you send your message from the same email address under which you subscribed to that list. Otherwise your message may not get delivered.
Search engines
We have set up several GEOS-Chem search engines which will let you search for information in the GEOS-Chem website, wiki, and manual pages.
You can also search the GEOS-Chem wiki by means of the search box in the left column. It is often more efficient to search for a topic rather than to follow links down from the main page.
--Bob Y. 16:25, 20 December 2010 (EST)


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pw_init, pw_setdir, pw_file, pw_edit, pw_prompt, pw_copy, pw_scan, pw_error - utility functions for interactive passwd file updates
#include <pwd.h> #include <util.h> void pw_init(); void pw_setdir(const char *directory); char * pw_file(const char *filename); void pw_edit(int notsetuid, const char *filename); void pw_prompt(); void pw_copy(int ffd, int tfd, const struct passwd *pw, const struct passwd *opw); int pw_scan(char *bp, struct passwd *pw, int *flags); void pw_error(const char *name, int err, int eval);
These functions are designed as conveniences for interactive programs which update the passwd file and do nothing else. They generally handle errors by printing out a message to the standard error stream and possibly aborting the process. The pw_init() function prepares for a passwd update by unlimiting all resource constraints, disabling core dumps (thus preventing dumping the contents of the passwd database into a world-readable file), and disabling most signals. The pw_setdir() function sets an alternative directory where the rest of the functions look for password-related files. Use this if you are writing utilities that should be able to handle password files outside of /etc. The pw_file() function transforms filenames so that they end up in the directory specified to the latest pw_setdir() call. The rule is that all directories are stripped of the given name and only the filename is appended to the directory. The pw_edit() function runs an editor (named by the environment variable EDITOR, or /usr/bin/vi if EDITOR is not set) on the file filename (or /etc/ptmp if filename is NULL). If notsetuid is nonzero, pw_edit() will set the effective user and group ID to the real user and group ID before running the editor. The pw_prompt() function asks the user whether he or she wants to re-edit the password file; if the answer is no, pw_prompt() deletes the lock file and exits the process. The pw_copy() function reads a passwd file from ffd and writes it to tfd, updating the entry corresponding to pw->pw_name with the information in pw. If opw is not NULL, opw->pw_name will be used for matching instead. Additionally, if the existing entry does not match opw, the operation is aborted. The use of opw allows the caller to change the user name in an entry as well as guarantee that the entry being replaced has not changed in the meantime. The pw_scan() function accepts in bp a passwd entry as it would be represented in /etc/master.passwd and fills in pw with corresponding values; string fields in pw will be pointers into bp. Some characters in bp will be overwritten with 0s in order to terminate the strings pointed to by pw. If flags is non-null, it is filled in with the following flags: _PASSWORD_NOUID The uid field of bp is empty. _PASSWORD_NOGID The gid field of bp is empty. _PASSWD_NOCHG The change field of bp is empty. _PASSWD_NOEXP The expire field of bp is empty. The pw_error() function displays an error message, aborts the current passwd update, and exits the current process. If err is non-zero, a warning message beginning with name is printed for the current value of errno. The process exits with status eval.
The pw_scan() function prints a warning message and returns 0 if the string in the bp argument is not a valid passwd string. Otherwise, pw_scan() returns 1.
/etc/master.passwd /etc/ptmp
pw_lock(3), passwd(5) OpenBSD 3.6 December 15, 1995


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To paraphrase Pete Seeger, "when will they ever learn?" The Virtual Economics blog has an interesting post today about a bungled Ask (the search engine) campaign to stir up a YouTubey, grassroots, Anti-Google "revolution." Like other big-company attempts to wrap themselves in the counter-culture banky, this one appears to have hidden the identity of the corporate sponsor. (Full disclosure: I represent another search company, FAST, so I am not without bias. But I will be transparent).
To be fair to Ask, let's wait to hear back from the company before we continue tormenting them. In the meantime, the rabble for this "revolution" may be turning upon the insurgents.


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Cafe Nadery in Serious Eats
Persian Comfort Served All Day at Cafe Nadery
by Craig Cavallo
December 3, 2013
I had seated myself, which is customary when you walk into a place that serves food but isn't exactly a restaurant. There's Gimme coffee and hand-blended tea, but Café Nadery isn't exactly a café. In many ways it's a gathering place inspired by and built around the Iranian heritage of the 21 people who own it. The café is a venue for readings, live music, film screenings, art exhibits, lectures, and fora. It just so happens they serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
kuku sabzi
The waitress sidled up to my table and rested her hands on its edge. She put a paper menu in front of me. It's the same one you get if you walk it at 9 a.m. when the café opens or 9 p.m., three hours before it closes. Café Nadery is open 15 hours a day (16 on weekends). The menu—thoughtful and versatile—is conscientious of that.
lamb kebob
If you haven't had breakfast, Sesame Date Minis ($.95) and Persian Black Tea ($2.50) go hand in hand. Both are only slightly sweet. If you're hungrier, go for the Kuku Sazbi ($9). It's a baked frittata, light and airy, turned deeply green by handfuls of dill, cilantro, and parsley. Greek yogurt brings a soft, subtle tang. There's a shortage of salt, but an abundance of sangak served with it, which is Iran's texturally appealing, somehow chewy-but-crisp, national bread.
The tired notion of a Kale and Apple Salad ($10) is woken up at Café Nadery with a cumin-lime vinaigrette, especially when the earthy cumin hits sweet Fuji apples. The kale softens under the dressing, to which walnuts add a bold crunch of contrast.
A soup on the menu was more of a stew: Ash-e Reshteh ($8), listed as a bean, herb, and noodle gumbo. If you were a stranger to this dish, as I was, you'd be wise to introduce yourself. After dried chick peas and kidney beans are soaked overnight, they join a bounty of spinach and herbs, but the best part is the dollop of kashk sitting buoy-like on the surface. Originally a by-product of cheese making, kashk is not unlike sour cream in that both are fermented, but kashk has a more excitable tang. Onions, garlic, dried mint, more spinach, and turmeric are chopped into a paste and floated next to the kashk. Both condiments loosen up when stirred into the hot stew. The dish is an exercise in Iranian comfort food.
The finely chopped roasted beets that make up the Beet Burger ($11) share the same color as rare beef and aren't far off in texture. Cheddar cheese adds to the farce, so too does lettuce, tomato, and pickled onions. Tamarind date chutney reminded me I was in the Middle East while I tried to wrap my head around the torshi that's served on the side. It's a fine meal, but for this carnivore hard not to crave the salty lick of an 80/20 beef blend.
Torshi are pickled vegetables, in the same ball field as Italy's giardiniera, i.e. cauliflower, carrots, celery, garlic, chili, vinegar etc. Though the Iranian preparation requires fermentation, and doing so brings the condiment to mouthwatering heights. Though not served with the Lamb Kabobs ($19), which are limited to Thursday nights after 6 p.m., my torshi were leftover when lunch turned to dinner one visit. And when the lamb, which spends the better part of a day marinating in a pomegranate molasses and walnut paste, shows up hot off the grill over saffron rice, the tender, medium rare chunks of meat are happy to drink the tangy relish. I'm happy to eat them.
Café Nadery is different from the countless storefronts that have come and gone on 8th Street over the years. It's a genuine concept better suited to last, calling back to older Greenwich Village cafes, and it lacks the hyper-niche, micro-focused inventory of stores that have shared the block. Time is on your side when you eat there, and doing so is a break from the city's rapid pace.


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What to Do After a Tornado
- Continue listening to local radio or television stations or a NOAA Weather Radio for updated information and instructions. Access may be limited to some parts of the community, or roads may be blocked.
- Help a neighbor who may require special assistance - infants, elderly people and people with disabilities. Elderly people and people with disabilities may require additional assistance. People who care for them or who have large families may need additional assistance in emergency situations.
- Help injured or trapped persons. Give first aid where appropriate. Do not move seriously injured persons unless they are in immediate danger of further injury. Call for help.
- Watch out for fallen power lines or broken gas lines and report them to the utility company immediately. Reporting potential hazards will get the utilities turned off as quickly as possible, preventing further hazard and injury.
- Avoid disaster areas. Your presence might hamper rescue and other emergency operations, and put you at further risk from the residual effects of tornadoes.
- Stay out of damaged buildings. Tornadoes can cause great damage, creating further hazards. If you are away from home, return only when authorities say it is safe.
When entering damaged buildings, use extreme caution. Moving through debris presents further hazards. Carefully watch every step you take.
- Wear sturdy shoes. The most common injury following a disaster is cut feet.
- Use battery-powered lanterns or flashlights when examining buildings. Battery-powered lighting is the safest and easiest, preventing fire hazard for the user, occupants, and building.
- Examine walls, floors, doors, staircases, and windows to make sure that the building is not in danger of collapsing.
- Look for fire hazards. There may be broken or leaking gas lines, or damage to electrical systems. Clean up spilled medicines, bleaches, gasoline, or other flammable liquids immediately. Fire is the most frequent hazard following other disasters.
- Check for gas leaks. If you smell gas or hear a blowing or hissing noise, open a window and quickly leave the building. Turn off the gas using the outside main valve if you can, and call the gas company from a neighbor's home. If you turn off the gas for any reason, it must be turned back on by a professional.
- Look for electrical system damage. If you see sparks or broken or frayed wires, or if you smell burning insulation, turn off the electricity at the main fuse box or circuit breaker. If you have to step in water to get to the fuse box or circuit breaker, call an electrician first for advice. Electrical equipment should be checked and dried before being returned to service.
- Watch for loose plaster, drywall, and ceilings that could fall.
- Take pictures of the damage, both of the building and its contents, for insurance claims.
- Use the telephone only for emergency calls. Telephone lines are frequently overwhelmed in disaster situations. They need to be clear for emergency calls to get through.
Odee Ann Leal
Emergency Management Director
Office of Emergency Management & Homeland Security
Physical Address
1150 E. Adams St.
2nd Floor
Brownsville, TX 78520
Phone: 956-504-7405Fax: 956-548-0085


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- Business
There is no silver bullet when it comes to ransomware, so you need a multi-layered approach, prioritized for the best risk mitigation.
The four layers are all infused with XGen™ security, a cross-generational blend of threat defence techniques that intelligently applies the right technology at the right time.
Email and web links are the most common way ransomware gets into your organization. Trend Micro Cloud App Security can protect users from malicious email in Microsoft® Office 365 environments. For on-premises email, augment your email gateway with Trend Micro™ Deep Discovery™ Email Inspector, and protect your users against malicious web sites with Trend Micro™ InterScan Web Security™.
When ransomware makes it to your endpoints, XGen™ security delivers several capabilities that stop it in its tracks, including behavioural analysis and high-fidelity machine learning.
Email and web are common ransomware entry points, but other network protocols and attack methods can also subject you to ransomware. Trend Micro™ Deep Discovery™ Inspector detects and blocks ransomware on your network so it can't spread to endpoints and servers.
It is becoming increasingly common for servers to get hit with ransomware, as attackers are injecting it into known software vulnerabilities. Protect your servers, whether physical, virtual, or in the cloud with Trend Micro™ Deep Security™.


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Truth for Life - Mar. 11, 2011
- Sign Up for Email?
- Published Mar 10, 2011
March 11
Sinful Beyond Measure
Romans 7:13
Beware of thinking lightly of sin. At the time of conversion, the conscience is so tender that we are afraid of the slightest sin. Young converts have a holy timidity, a godly fear of offending God. But sadly very soon the fine bloom upon these first ripe fruits is removed by the rough handling of the surrounding world: The sensitive plant of young piety turns into a willow in later life, too pliable, too easily yielding.
It is sadly true that even a Christian may grow by degrees so callous that the sin that once startled him does not alarm him in the least. By degrees men get familiar with sin. The ear in which the cannon has been booming will not notice slight sounds. At first a little sin startles us; but soon we say, "Is it not a little one?" Then there comes another, larger, and then another, until by degrees we begin to regard sin as but a small matter; and this is followed by an unholy presumption: "We have not fallen into open sin. True, we tripped a little, but we stood upright for the most part. We may have uttered one unholy word, but as for most of our conversation, it has been consistent." So we toy with sin; we throw a cloak over it; we call it by dainty names.
Christian, beware of thinking lightly of sin. Take heed in case you fall little by little. Sin a little thing? Is it not a poison? Who knows its deadliness? Sin a little thing? Do not the little foxes spoil the grapes? Doesn't the tiny coral insect build a rock that wrecks a navy? Do not little strokes fell lofty oaks? Will not continual drippings wear away stones? Sin a little thing? It put a crown of thorns on Jesus' head and pierced His heart! It made Him suffer anguish, bitterness, and woe. If you could weigh the least sin in the scales of eternity, you would run from it as from a serpent and abhor the slightest appearance of evil. Look upon all sin as that which crucified the Savior, and you will see it to be "sinful beyond measure."
Family Bible reading plan
verse 1 Exodus 22
verse 2 John 1
Click here to learn more about Truth For Life
From Morning & Evening revised and edited by Alistair Begg copyright © 2003. Used by permission of Crossway Books, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.org.


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It's a new year, and we all know what that means. Most of us probably made some kind of New Year's resolution, and for many of us, it had something to do with getting back in shape, right? I recently checked out an infographic that said that the most broken New Year's resolution was actually the promise of just that, getting back in shape. So what is it that keeps us from following through and really doing what we said we would? In some cases, it probably just has to do with dedication. Usually though, if I were to speculate, it has more to do with the fact that we are all a little bit too lazy to follow through on our promise.
As always, there is a way to motivate that dedication, and this time it is a really good way. It's one that will actually have you lose something if you don't follow through properly. It is called the GymPact iPhone app, and it is a sure way to get that exercise of yours rockin. So what it is all about? Well, you have to sign up, and that means to agree to the fact that what you deposit into the pact as far as money will be lost of you don't do what you set out to do.
This means the people who stay active and actually exercise (it's all measured by GPS so there is no cheating) will earn (steal) money from the people who don't. Yup, that's right, this whole thing is funded by lazy people. If you keep being a couch potato, you could potentially lose a lot of money. That is, of course, if you choose to download the application and actually sign up and join a pact. Are you ready to face the challenge, or are you going to stay in the shadows of the lazy and keep complaining about not getting back into shape? The choice is yours…
Via: [DVICE]


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The latest lookbook for oki-ni, styled by Mark McMahon, shows off lots of outerwear in a range of textures — cords, wool, and neoprene (!) — paired with clashing prints and colors. (We're all about it these days.) Sadly, the garments are too thick for our blood and for SoCal winters, so we'll enjoy it from the comfort of our computer.
(image via oki-ni)